


Our problems

by Renidy



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV), Matthew Gray Gubler - Fandom, Spencer Reid - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Friends to Lovers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 17:53:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29493876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Renidy/pseuds/Renidy
Summary: Anna Robins lives with her best friend in America after living in Europe for the first 18 years of her life. What will the new country and new school bring into her  life or who will it bring?This book will not contain smut. It will also talk about mental illness. Anna does have anxiety.
Relationships: Spencer Reid/Original Female Character(s)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Lee uses they/them pronouns. Just in case any ones confused.

“Anna” My best friend screamed. What time is it? I reached over to my phone to check. 7.02am. Fuck i’m going to be late. I quickly ran to the bathroom and brushed my teeth and combed my hair. I just put on the first things I found in my room. Which were big baggy blue jeans and a red hoodie. It wasn’t a look but it was something. As I grab my things from my room I check my phone again. 7.10am. Eight minutes, that’s a new record.

“I made you coffee.” I hear my roommate Lee yell from the kitchen. Lee has been my best friend since 6th grade. They are the most accepting and funniest person i’ve ever met. We decided to move to America after we turned 18. We wanted to go to school here and get away from the people. We have an apartment that we share. Our parents were nice enough to pay for it.

“This is why I love you,” I say as I take the coffee mug from their hands. I quickly down the coffee and put on my all black vans.  
“I have classes till three so see you then. Bye, I Love you!” I say as I make my way through the door. I plop in my earphones and start walking. It’s beautiful outside. The sun was shining brightly and it felt like everything had more colour to it. The trees seemed greener, the sky bluer. Even the sidewalk seemed prettier.

Without realising it I had made it to school and I was actually early. Everytime I thought I was going to be late I ended up arriving before anyone else. My anxiety doesn’t let me be late for things. When I do end up fully sleeping in I just don’t go to my class. The thought of walking into a classroom late is terrifying.

School had just ended and I was walking home with my earphones blocking out the outside world. As I was admiring the nature around me I walked into someone by accident.

“Oh I’m so sorry. I wasn’t paying attention. I’m so sorry,” I ramble as I take my earphones out to look at who I just pumped into. As I look up I see a young man, probably mid-twenties, shoulder length curly brown hair, hazel eyes and a little bit of stubble going on. I also noticed he is very tall compared to me. I’m 5’4 and he seems to be at least 6’ tall.

“No worries. It happens but try to be more careful. It’s dangerous to zone out while walking.” He said with a small smile playing on his lips.

“I’ll try my best but I can't promise you anything” I say while chuckling. Now that i look at him closely he’s kinda cute. Not my usual type but cute.

“But I need to get going. Can’t be late to work or the big boss man will be angry. Bye!” He waves as he’s walking away.

“Bye!” I yell after him with a bright smile. God that was embarrassing. Walking into a complete stranger. I probably looked like an idiot. Luckily it was a random guy so it save me the embarrassment of seeing him again. I put my earphones back in and continued my walk home.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been a few weeks since I walked into that random guy. I’m currently at the grocery store. with Lee. We were looking at ice cream and laughing when I noticed someone familiar near the frozen vegetables.

“Hey, I think that’s the guy I walked into a few weeks ago.” I say as i nudge Lee to look around.

“You have to be a more specific dumbass. There are a lot of people here.” They said back while looking around.

“The one in a sweater vest and stop staring you look like a creep.” I say hushed not wanting him to see us just staring at him. It was embarrassing enough when I walked into him. I don’t want to embarrass myself more by getting caught staring at him.

As I was looking down at the ice creams I could hear Lee whisper in my ear, “Hey I think he keeps glancing at us.”

“What? No he isn’t. He’s probably looking at someone else.” I say dismissively continuing to look at the ice cream.

“No, I'm pretty sure he is looking at us.” They kept whispering at me while looking somewhere else.

“And why’s that?” I said sarcastically. I was annoyed at this point. 

“Because he is walking our way and I think he is going to try and talk to you” They said, smirking slightly and also with slight panic in their voice because they hated talking to new people. 

“Wait, what?” I say quickly looking around and there he was walking towards me with a small smile on his face

He was wearing black slacks, a navy dress shirt, a maroon skinny tie, a dark sweater vest and a dark blazer over it. He looked good but very overdressed for shopping. As I look at him dumbfounded that I’m meeting him again and that he’s walking towards me, he notices that I noticed him and he gives me a little wave. I quickly wave back trying to build my confidence. I’m not the best at talking to people, especially people I don’t know. 

“Um, hey it’s nice to see you again.” He says with a bright smile. Why is he talking to me? I’ve only met him once briefly. What would he need from me? 

“Uhh, yeah hi yeah it’s nice to see you too. Umm why so dressed up? I don’t mean you look bad or anything. Not that you look bad you actually look really good, it’s just that we're at a grocery store and you don’t see a lot of people wearing suits and ties. I mean of course it happens but it doesn’t happen often” I ramble. I can feel my cheeks redding up. All the confidence i had before is all gone at this point and i can hear Lee trying their hardest not to wheeze out loud.

“Haha, well um thank you, uhh you look great yourself and yeah you’re right you don’t see a lot of people dressing like this at the store. I just got off from work actually so yeah that’s why I’m dressed like this.” He speaks quickly while fidgeting with his fingers. He seemed awkward and like he doesn't get compliments often. 

“Well that explains it hahah. Hey so did big boss man get angry that time? Also sorry again for walking into you.” I’m starting to feel a little more relaxed but I’m still nervous. Lee had wandered off at this point, going to get the other stuff we needed. 

“Haha yeah he was a little mad but he luckily got over it. Just told me not to make it a habit and so far i’ve been on time.” He chuckled remembering the first time we met.

“So was there anything you needed or wanted?” I finally asked since I'm still confused why he's talking to me. He had no particular reason to be talking to me.

“Ah yeah uh I was wondering and also hoping that maybe you were willing to give me your number? I totally understand if you want to say no. I mean….” He quickly plabs I could barely understand what he said. Also why was he asking me for my number and should I give it to him.

“Yeah of course you can have it.” Lee says suddenly. Where did they come from? I swear to god they just disappear and reappear whenever they want. They startled me and why were they trying to give my number to a stranger.

“Wait, wait shouldn’t I have a say in this. Also I don’t think it’s the safest thing to give my number to a stranger. I don’t even know his name. He could be a serial killer for all I know.” I tell Lee, forgetting for a second that the guy is still there waiting for an answer.

“Spencer. My name is Spencer Reid.” He quietly mumbled while looking at the ground and fidgeting with his fingers. I suddenly remembered that he was also here so I turned to face him and I smiled at him. It was nice to have his name.

“I’m Anna. Anna Robins but I still don’t know if you’re going to murder me or not.” I say with a chuckle. I have watched enough true crime videos to know not to give my number to random people.

“I promise I won’t murder you and if you still don’t belive me than I also work for the FBI. I actually help to catch serial killers. Me and my team profile them and then hunt them down.” He said eagerly. It seems like he really enjoys talking about his work and team I guess. He works for the FBI? He seems a little young but very put together. 

“You work for the FBI and you catch serial killers? You really should have started with that. I would've probably asked for your number myself. I’m just the tiniest bit interested in true crime, so talking to someone who works with serial killers is like a dream come true.” I laughed. It truly was amazing meeting a person like this. It was still hard to imagine Spencer working with serial killers. He kind of looks like he could be a college professor.

“Yeah, the tiniest bit” Lee scoffs next to me. I elbow them slightly to shut them up. I didn’t want Spencer knowing I’m obsessed with true crime. What if he thinks I’m a serial killer or something. I chuckle nervously and look at Spencer.

“Hahah yeah, I’m slightly obsessed with true crime but I swear I’m not a serial killer myself. It’s just fascinating to me why they do it. What goes on in their brains that leads them to do something so violent and evil.” I explain quickly, hoping that he doesn’t think I’m a creep.

“My phone number is….. if you’re still interested.” I say hopefully. I really wanted to meet with him later on just so I could ask questions about his job.

“I am still indeed interested and thank you. It was nice talking to you. I’ll text you, alright?” He seemed hopeful like I was going to reject him now.

“Sounds great.It was nice talking to you also. I’ll talk to you later then. Bye!” I say cheerfully and waving at him. It was nice talking to him even though I was extremely nervous. It was nice. I felt like I could trust him and I’m really hoping I’m not wrong about this feeling. I have before and let’s just say I don’t want to relive that.

“So new potential toxic boyfriend?” Lee asks me as we walk to the cash register.

“What? No, I’m interested in his work. It’s not everyday you meet an FBI agent. We’ve been here for what? Six months now? He is the first person to come and talk to me randomly. I want more friends. I love you but we barely ever leave the apartment. Also why toxic boyfriend. I know I don’t have good taste in men but that doesn’t mean every guy that talks to me is toxic.” I say defensively. I really didn’t have a good track record with guys but Spencer seemed so innocent. I can’t imagine him being like the others.

“Yeah suuuree. Whatever helps you sleep at night.” They laugh. We always laughed at everything. Some people think we are mean because of the way we talk to each other but in reality we never take each other seriously, we never get offended by what we say to each other. We know it’s not meant in a hurtful way. I just chuckle at them. Today was a good day and I can’t wait to talk to Spencer.


	2. Chapter 2

Me and Spencer have been texting each other for two weeks now and we are planning on meeting up for coffee on Wednesday, It’s currently Monday. I’m really anxious about going to meet him. I know it’s not a date at least I don’t think it is. We really didn’t discuss it. It’s too early for a date anyway. I still barely know him. I’m not good with people. I don’t know how to talk with them and keep a conversation going. I’m also a people pleaser and usually when I’m with people I just put up whatever personality they like the most or what fits with the other people. I really don’t like just being myself around people because it usually just ends up with people making fun of me but Spencer doesn’t seem like he would do that though, maybe he was also bullied in school. 

I’m currently doing school work and I’m extremely stressed and unmotivated. I’ve been struggling with school for a few weeks now. It happens sometimes when my mental health gets bad. I get unmotivated to do really anything or take care of myself. I start overthinking and everything seems so overwhelming. I decided that I can’t deal with school at the moment. I need to get my health sorted out before I could do anything productive. 

Usually when I’m feeling this way I either go on walks or try to write. Writing is a new coping mechanism I’ve picked up. I have been enjoying it a lot. It’s actually good to me in the sense of one of my other coping mechanisms is smoking. I know it’s terrible for my health but it helps me calm down when I’m coming down from a panic attack or after crying. It helps me relax in a way and I haven’t had the willpower to quit yet. 

I sigh as I get out of bed and walk over to Lee's room. I knock on their door and I hear a faint “come in” from the other side so I open the door and walk in.

“Hey, I haven’t been feeling the best lately. I was wondering if you wanted to hang out. Go on a walk maybe stop for coffee somewhere and just talk and have fun.”

“Yeah, of course just let me grab my jacket and wallet and we can go”

“Okay thank you, I’ll go get my stuff as well.”

“You don’t have to thank me for helping you. I’m not doing out of pity, I’m doing it because I care about you and I will do literally anything for you.”

“Even do my homework?”

“Don’t push your luck. I love you but not that much haha.”

We ended up walking around the town for about an hour just joking and enjoying the weather. We also went and got coffee from this little cafe. It was an amazing place and I’m definitely going back there at some point. It was small but it could fit somewhere 40 people I’m guessing. They had different kinds of coffee. They also had hot chocolate but the best part was the cakes. There were five different types of cakes on display and you could choose a slice of whatever you wanted. I got chocolate cake and Lee got Carrot cake. Both of them were absolutely amazing. Hands down the best cake I’ve ever had. I didn’t even know simple chocolate cake could be so good. 

Hanging out with Lee was really nice. I felt like I got a breath of fresh air and I could actually get my stuff done. Of course it’s going to take more than one walk but atleast I have some motivation. When we got back it was 7pm and I decided I’m going to shower and then just lay in bed and watch “Supernatural”. As I’m undressing myself in the bathroom about to take the long awaited shower I hear my music stop for a second and I hear a notification that someone has messaged me. So grab my phone and see that Spencer had texted me

From Spenser: Hey. How was your day? I just got home from work. Today was a hard day.

From Anna: Hey. It was okay. I was feeling down so me and Lee went on a walk. Sad to hear that you had a hard day. You want to talk about it?

From Spencer: A little yeah. Is it okay if I call you?

From Anna: I was just about to take a shower. How about I call you when I’m done?  
From Spencer: Okay sounds good!

I put my music back on and head in the shower. After 30 minutes and one awesome shower concert later I’m finally done. I hop out of the shower and dry myself. I just decided to put on my pj since I’m not going out today anymore. I grab my phone from the counter and walk into my room. I decided that I’m going to put my earphones in so I can clean my room a little while I talk to spencer.

I took a few deep breaths before calling him. Yeah we’ve been messaging each other for a little while now but we haven’t called before and I don’t like calling people. If possible I would rather text. With texting you can fully think of what you're saying but on a call you don’t have that and I have a tendency to get really awkward and embarrass myself. I finally hit call. My anxiety is through the roof at the moment. I wait for Spencer to pick up before I move. 

“Hey” I was nervous and you could definitely tell by my voice.

“Hey” He was also nervous. It was comforting that I wasn't the only one.

“So um how you’ve been? This is the first time we are talking instead of messaging.” He sounded tired. 

“Yeah it is. I haven’t been feeling the best lately.” I was being honest. I didn’t like lying to people.

“Are you sick? What’s wrong? Do you need chicken soup? Do you want chicken soup? I can bring you some.” He quickly said. He sounded really worried. It was nice that he cared.

“Calm down. I’m okay. When I said I haven’t been feeling well I meant mentally. I haven’t been doing well mentally but chicken soup does sound nice.” I didn’t like talking about my mental health with new people because they usually think I’m weird even though it was normal but I trusted Spencer.

“Ouh okay. Is there anything I can do to help? Besides soup I mean.” He still seemed worried but a little more calmed down.

“Not really. Don’t worry about it. This happens sometimes and when it does I usually don’t do anything for two weeks and then I slowly start feeling better and I start taking care of myself. Enough about me though. How was work? What happened?” I didn’t want to talk about myself so I tried to change the subject.

“The case we had involved child abduction. Everyone got out alive but what those kids had to live through was horrible and I feel like I should've done more.” He sounded sad like he was disappointed in himself.

“Hey Spence.” I said firmly. I wanted him to fully pay attention to my words.

“yeah?” He was quiet but I could still hear him.

“How many lives did you save today?” I asked.

“Three kids.” He was still quiet like he was embarrassed about the answer.

“You saved three lives today. Three kids who now have a life ahead of them because you helped save them. You really should focus on that. Every life saved is what matters right.” How dare he think like he didn’t do enough. He saved three lives in one day. That's more than some people do in their lifetimes.

“Yeah, yeah you’re right thank you. I needed to hear that.” He still sounded a little sad.

“Anytime Spence. I’m always here if needed. So is the chicken soup on the table?” I wanted to change the topic and try to make him feel better.

“Hahah, you really like chicken soup don’t you.” He laughed. Yes, I made him laugh. That’s good.

“Of course I do. Chicken soup is the best soup to exist. Who doesn't love it?” My love for chicken soup is endless. I could eat it forever. It is the best think mankind has created.

“If you are okay with it maybe I can come over and bring us chicken soup and we can hang out?” He asked shyly. 

“You want to have a sleepover?” I asked, hoping he would say yes.

“I guess yeah.” He still sounded nervous. If only he knew what he was getting himself into.

“Ouh you’re going to regret that haha. Wait I gotta ask if Lee is okay with it. I’m going to mute you for a second. Brb.” Lee and I’s sleepovers were always all around the place and it usually ended up with at least one of us having a new hair colour or haircut.

“Hey, Lee. Spencer asked if he could come sleepover at our place. Are you okay with it?” I asked, I knew they were going to say yes but it was still nice to ask. You never know.

“Uuuhh Spencer wants to have a sleepover?” They wiggling their eyebrows suggestively. Of course they were. 

“Yeah and I wanna show him what our sleepovers look like. You remember back in ninth grade what our sleepovers were like? yeah I want to do that again.” I say excitedly. I really wanted him to have fun and make this a night to remember.

“Ouh hell yeah then”

“Okay I’ll let him know.” I walked away and unmute Spence so he could hear me again.

“Hey, I’m back. They agreed but I was wondering if you can drive and also own a car?” I ask hoping to god that he did.

“Hey, yeah I do. Why do you ask?” He sounded confused.

“I want to get snacks and other stuff from the store but I don’t like walking around alone when it’s dark outside. I just don’t feel safe doing it so I was hoping you are willing to come pick me up and we can go to the store together.” I explain myself, hopefully he understands. Unfortunately not a lot of guys do.

“Yeah, of course and you are smart for not going by yourself. Just give me your address and I will be there.” It seemed like he was starting to get more comfortable with talking to me.

“Okay my address is…...I’ll see you soon then I guess.” 

“See you soon bye!”

I wasn’t planning on going anywhere today and I don’t know how much time I had before Spencer will arrive so I just put on a pair of black sweatpants and a gray hoodie. I grabbed my backpack and wallet and headed towards the living room to talk to Lee while I waited for Spencer. 

“Hey Spencer is going to pick me up and then we will go to the store to get snacks. What do you want?”  
“Cheese balls and a monster please.”

“Okay I was also thinking about dying my hair. You know, like bleach the under part and keep the top part brown. You know, like Draco's mother haha.”

“Ouh yeah that sounds good. Could you pick up some green hair dye for me as well please?”

“Yeah of course. Anything else?”

“Frozen pizza?”

“Sure”

As we are casually talking about what to do tonight I hear a small knock on the front door.It took him 15minutes to get here. I take a deep sigh. I’m very excited about the sleepover but this is also our first sleepover so I’m nervous and this is the first time we are officially hanging out. I walk towards the door and I see Spencer standing there wearing jeans and a gray hoodie. I don’t know what i was expecting him to wear but it wasn’t that. The more I think about it makes sense. We were having a sleepover so obviously he wanted to be comfortable.

“Hey, We’re matching.” I said excitedly. I love it when my outfits match with other people.

“Hey, yeah we are. Are you ready to go?” He chuckled, also noticing our outfits.

“Yeah, let’s go”


	3. Chapter 3

The drive to the store was really awkward to say the least. Neither of us knew what to talk about. Spence tried to talk to me about the weather. The weather! It was truly horrible but at least the tension eased a little bit when we got to the store. We walked into the store and I picked up a shopping basket. Spencer quickly followed. We were currently looking at ice cream.

“Okay, important question. Do you like mint ice cream?” I was dead serious and you could tell by my face and voice.

“Mint chocolate chip ice cream was invented in 1973 by culinary student Marilyn Ricketts while studying at South Devon College in England. She entered a competition to provide an ice cream dessert for Princess Anne’s wedding to Captain Mark Philips at Westminster Abby.” He spewed facts at me. Looking slightly nervous for some reason.

“I didn't know that but you didn’t answer my question.” I understood that he was avoiding the question and I wasn’t going to let it slide.

“Ouh well umm I actually haven’t tried it before” I practically whispered. He seemed shy to admit it. 

“WHAT! You haven’t tried it before?! You know random facts about ice cream you haven’t even tried yet” Who hasn’t tried it before! Many say it tastes like toothpaste but it really doesn’t. I don’t know what other people's toothpastes tastes like but mine doesn’t tastes like ice cream.

“Yeah?” It came out as a question. He wasn’t certain in what he was saying.

“We’re going to change that tonight and you have no say in that.” He didn’t have a choice anymore. Whether he likes it or not he will try it.

“And what if I end up not liking it?” He questioned playfully. We were starting to feel more comfortable around each other. It was nice having someone.

“Then I’m sorry to say this but our friendship will be over.” I joked with a smirk on my face. 

“Ouh wow that’s a lot of pressure.” He chuckled. He was loosening up. 

“Indeed. I only need one more thing and then we can go.” I babbled excitedly.

“Okay, what do you need?” He questioned. He wondered what else we would need. We already had a basket full of snacks.

“Hair dye.” I said while doing jazz hands.

“Hair dye?” He seemed confused. I don’t blame him. My hair doesn’t look like it's been dyed.

“Yeah, Lee and I are going to dye your hair.” I tried to say as seriously as possible while holding in a laugh.

“WHAT!” He said with a raised voice. He seemed genuinely surprised and scared.

“Calm down, I was making a joke. Lee and I like dying our hair sometimes.” I got out somehow. I was in pain from laughing so much. He’s reaction was truly beautiful.

“Many store-bought hair dyes contain metallic salts that accumulate on the hair shaft and can cause breakage or discoloration.” He told me like he was trying to convince me not to do it.

“I am aware but I’ve been doing this since the 5th grade and I still have all of my hair. I think I will be fine. How do you know all of these random facts anyway?” I question him. Most people don’t know so many facts about such random things.

“I read a lot.” He stated calmly. He was holding something back I could tell.

“Sure. How smart are you? I mean I don’t know what it takes to get in the FBI but I know they don’t let just anyone in.”

“Um Well if you mean academically then I have 3 PhDs and I have an eidetic memory.

“Ouh wow that’s a lot but so cool at the same time.What are they in?” I was genuinely impressed.

“Mathematics, chemistry and engineering.” 

“That’s awesome honestly. I love learning and knowing a lot of things but I’ve always had trouble with studying because of my mental health. Just the way the school system works and puts on the pressure that you have to get good grades and I just couldn’t do it.” I admitted. I knew I was smart but I never felt like it in school.

“But you’re in school right now?”

“Yeah but I’m just taking a few courses and I’m having trouble with that also.” I was starting to get slightly uncomfortable. I didn't like talking about myself a lot. 

“What courses are you taking?”

“Mostly psychology related.”

“Really?” 

“You sound surprised.” I said in a monotone. Thanks I guess.

“Ouh sorry I didn’t mean to offend you in any way. It’s just with my job I know a lot about psychology and human behaviour.” He apologised quickly after realizing how he sounded.

“Ouh in that case maybe you can help me sometimes.” I already thought he was making fun of me.

We just arrived at the car and I opened the trunk so Spence could put the shopping bags there. After that he quickly walked over to the passenger side and opened the car door for me like the true gentleman he is. I said a quick thanks as I got in. He quickly followed. He has a nice car. Maybe I should get a license. I can’t walk everywhere forever. 

As he was starting the car I asked “Hey Spence mind if I play some music?”pointing at the radio.

“Sure go ahead.”

“Thanks.”

I get excited when I get to play music on a car ride. I feel like I get to show who I am with music. I had no idea what to play. I didn’t want to be judged because oftentimes when I play music people tend to judge a little. As I scrolled through my phone I finally decided on “someone new” by Hozier. I started lightly singing along as I watched out the window. I liked the city when it got dark. The street lamps being the only light source was beautiful to me. I noticed Spencer was tapping the steering wheel to the beat of the music.

We arrived back at my place fairly quickly. I took the bags from the trunk and started walking towards my apartment. Spencer offered to help carry the bags but I said it was okay. I walked to my door and placed the bags gently down so I could unlock the door. I swiftly took the keys from my pant pockets. I unlock the door and walk in. I told Spence where to put his shoes. 

As I walked into the kitchen I yelled “Honey, I’m home!” I could hear Lee shuffling from the living room into the kitchen. “Finally, I’m starving.” They said as they came over and looked into the bags. They immediately took the frozen pizza into the oven.

“So what are we-” I got cut off by a phone ringing. It was Spencers. He muttered a sorry and walked out of the room.

“Wonder who’s that,” Lee said looking at Spencer as he was walking out.

“I don’t know. Maybe a friend or work or something. Even though he just got back from work.” I answered. I really hope that’s not work calling him. I had gotten really excited about this sleepover. If I’m honest I would be a little upset if he had to leave but I understand that his work is important to the world and him.

I was pulled out of my thoughts as Spencer walked back into the room with a sad look on his face. Ouh no. I thought. 

“Duty calls?” I asked even though I knew the answer already.

“Unfortunately. I’m really sorry I have to leave. I’ll make it up to you I promise.” He seemed genuine. I couldn’t be mad at a face like that.

“You better.” I said with a smile. It still hurt but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I could tell he wanted to stay but couldn’t. We silently walked to the door and waited till Spencer put his shoes back on. After we just waved towards one another silently. Just like that he was gone again.


End file.
